


Bakery by the Beach

by Just_Will



Category: Captain America (Movies), Captain America - All Media Types, The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types, Young Avengers
Genre: Alternate Universe - Bakery, Alternate Universe - Beach, F/M, Food, Food Porn, Hairy Steve Rogers, Jock Straps, M/M, SHIELD, Steve Rogers Cooks, though not what you think
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-04-06
Updated: 2016-04-14
Packaged: 2018-05-31 17:21:22
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,315
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6479365
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Just_Will/pseuds/Just_Will
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Steve just wants to bake muffins, doughnuts, and other assorted treats for a living but he's finding it harder to manage everything just on his own.  There's also a growing issue of strange dealings going on in the neighborhood but he's not sure what exactly is going on.  With some help from his friends, a snarky bunch of teenagers, and a strange new man in town, though, maybe Steve can get through the next year with his sanity and store still in tact.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> First time writing anything in this category so by all means let me know how I do.  
> This will eventually be a mature work featuring sex between two males and also whatever else I can throw into it. I'll add tags as they become important but there will be smut eventually here, just not anytime soon beyond some self gratification maybe.

Life in Florida was honestly a lot better than Steve thought it would have been.  Being able to run on the beach whenever he wanted, warm temperatures year round, and lots of room that New York City just didn’t have in abundance were all good deals for him.  He could honestly see why his mother had talked about retiring down here when he was younger. 

Standing in the middle of the beach he looked out at the ocean and thought more about his mother.  It had been years since he had had to say goodbye to her, but it never really stopped hurting for a moment when he thought of her.  He hoped she would be proud of him now and he only wished she could see him now.

“Well maybe not right now,” Steve muttered to himself looking down at his sweaty torso and all the sand that was covering his hairy legs, “I look like a mess.”

Chuckling at that thought he looked down at his watch and saw that he needed to get back home.  He had to shower up and get ready for the afternoon before too long as well as get something to eat.

Turning to walk up towards the street Steve thought more about what all needed to be done soon.  He had to make some more goodies for the store, place some orders for flour and flavorings, and at some point he had to get to the bank.  It wasn’t a big deal, the amount of things he had to do, but still he had to plan his days carefully so he had time to do everything. 

‘Life of a small business owner I guess,’ he thought with an almost rueful smile; not that he’d change anything about it.  It was a good life he had.  He had served in the army since he had gotten himself emancipated at 16, made a good career rising in the ranks to make captain, and after he had served for a few tours he had decided to retire.  Having nothing in New York to go back to he made his way down to Levram, Florida where he bought a small  building near the beach and started up his own business.

It hadn’t been much when he bought it; just a simple three floor building that functioned both as his business and house, but now it was something special to him.  It was his home, his livelihood, and, as he looked up at the sky blue building, it was something that was all his. 

The name of the place was a joke that his friend Tony had suggested.  Steve’s House of Incredible Edible Little Desserts was what the guy had said one day when he was serving his friends a sample of what he hoped to sell at the store and it had just stuck for them all to call his place that.  Of course calling it SHIELD Bakery was a lot easier and catchier, not to mention that he could easily paint a shield on the sign he made that hung over the store front to make it more eye catching.  The little circle with a white star in the center and blue background with bands of red and white around it looked very nice in Steve’s opinion and he always looked at it with a bit of pride.

Ignoring the front entrance though, he walked in the alleyway beside his place and a small surf shop to make his way to the back door.  Sand was a pain to sweep up and he tried very hard not to drag more in if he could help it.  Pushing the fence door open he took off his shoes and stepped over to his hose before he washed off his legs.  The cold water felt good after the exertion he had put them through running for a near full 30 minutes straight.

Going inside he was instantly assaulted by the smells of breads, muffins, cupcakes, and all manner of sweets that he had made in the kitchen.  Looking around he saw that everything was just as he left it, not that he expected anything less, but still nice to notice.  Grabbing a towel he kept by the door he quickly dried off and started to walk to the stairs that lead up to his living area only to be stopped by a young voice.

“That you, boss?”

“Yeah, Billy it’s me,” Steve smiled and decided to make a detour to the shop where his regular employee was manning the cash register and reading a comic book.  The young man was skinny with a shaggy mop of dark hair about to enter his last year of high school and while he wasn’t the best baker he followed directions easily.  He’d been working for Steve for months now and he actually had grown to like the kid enough that he let him handle things during slow hours by himself.

“Enjoy your run?”  Billy looked up asking.

“Yeah, beach was quiet today.  Tourist season is slowing down, schools are going to be starting back up and things will slow down a bit until Halloween.  Anyone come in while I was gone?”  He looked around the display cases he had out full of cookies and breads but even with his good memory he couldn’t tell if anything had been sold.

“A couple of older women came in, bought a few red velvet cupcakes and a few blueberry cream cheese doughnuts for a get together they were having tonight.  Other than that a mom came in and bought her daughter a sugar cookie.  Been slow.”

“Yeah… Think you can manage the place a bit longer while I take a quick shower and make some lunch?  I was thinking apple hummus melts if you want one.” 

“Sure thing, Cap.  Can I have Swiss on mine?” 

“Sure can, kidd-o,” Steve chuckled and ruffled his hair as he made his way back towards the stairs.  As he went he caught Billy’s reflection looking after him and Steve had to force himself not to shake his own head and laugh.  He knew Billy was gay, didn’t have a problem with it being that way himself of course, but the kid was not as subtle about his attractions as he thought he was.

‘Heck when I was his age I was a lot more discrete.  Then again everyone pretty much ignored the 120 pound weakling that looked half dead so maybe I wasn’t.’  Steve smirked as he thought of himself as a teenager; all skinny limbs, bones, and not enough meat on him to feed a starving mutt.  He had really shot up with his last growth spurt and getting his training in the army really helped bulk him up to where he was now.  No longer was he a sickly boy he was a full grown man; a grown man that was in serious need of a shower.

As Steve peeled his sweaty tank top off his body he caught a serious whiff of the sweaty musk he’d gained from his run and smiled.  Normally he wouldn’t mind how he smelled but he had a bakery to run and no matter his preference to his musk he needed to smell clean.  With that in mind he tossed his tank into the hamper in his bathroom before he pulled off his bike shorts and jockstrap to join it.

Ten minutes later, and smelling of Old Spice soap, Steve walked into his kitchen with a towel around his waist and one around his neck.  If he was going to get back to Billy fast he’d have to multitask a bit and he could dry off and slice apples at the same time.

Turning on his toaster oven Steve worked to quickly get the apples cored and cut them into thin slices.  From there it was just a matter of arranging the slices on some bread with some hummus and cheese on top before popping it into the small oven and letting it toast for a while.  That meant that Steve was now able to slip into some clothes now that he had finished air drying.

Running his towel over his downy chest just to get off any residual moisture from his hairy body Steve started to think more about what the changing seasons were going to mean for his business.  Things were improving so he needed help and while Billy was happy to help now he would have school, clubs, community service projects, and hopefully dates, if he ever broke out of his shell more, coming up.  He had put up a “Help Wanted” sign last week for anyone interested in working there but so far no one had applied and he was starting to get a bit concerned about it.

‘I could handle the place for the most part by myself, but it’s going to be rough with orders coming in,’ Steve sighed as he slid on a fresh jock before pulling on some jeans, ‘Maybe I could reach out to a temp agency.  That’s what they’re for after all.’

Hearing a timer go off, though, Steve pushed those thoughts away for another time.  He pulled on an old shirt that would be getting covered in flour soon and his sandals before he headed out to the kitchen.  Pulling out the sandwiches he put them on a plate and headed back downstairs where he heard Billy thanking someone and the bell to the shop chime.

Reaching the bottom of the step he walked around and saw that the store was still empty, but Billy was looking at an order form. 

“We got an order for something, Billy?”  Placing the plate by the boy Steve walked around to a cooler that housed soft drinks and water while looking at the teenager to see what had happened.

“Yeah, nothing to big; 3 dozen muffins: 6 strawberry, 6 blueberry, 12 apple, 4 mango, 6 banana nut, and 2 vanilla bean for this Saturday.  Nothing else about the order than that and I told the guy that ordered them we could have them done before 8 then for him to pick up.  That alright?”

“Yeah that’s not a bad order.  I think we’re running low on apples though so I’ll need to pick some up soon, other than that we should be good,” Steve smiled and handed Billy a coke before he cracked open his own bottle of water and took a swig of it.

“I’ll make a note of it, and by the way while you were in the shower a guy came in asking about the ‘help wanted’ sign you had on display.  I gave him an application and he said he’d try to bring it by tomorrow.  Looked like he was applying for a lot of jobs so I guess he wanted to fill them all out at once.” 

“He seem like he could work here?”  Steve asked while he took a bite of his hummus melt.

“Dunno, you might not want to hire him though,” Billy shrugged as he took his own bite.

“What do you mean?”  It wasn’t like Billy to be judgmental so to hear him say something like that rang a warning bell in Steve’s mind.

“He just looks rough and a bit mean.  I mean he could just be having a bad day but he was real gruff sounding and he had a bunch of marks on his left arm.  Looked like burns.  He might scare away people up front but you never know,” the kid shrugged, “Maybe he won’t even be back, and if he does come back you can see for yourself.”

“Well he is the first person to actually want to apply here so I’ll talk to him if he comes back.  Did he leave a name or anything?”

“Yeah,” Billy took a swallow of his coke, “Said his name was Barnes.  James Buchannan Barnes, but that he normally went by Bucky.”

“Bucky huh?”  Steve hummed in thought at the name as he ate his sandwich.  ‘Well maybe ‘Bucky’ will be a good guy to have on board.  Guess I’ll just wait and see.’


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The early morning to a baker is calm... Until someone decides to stop by before it's time to open.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So far not a lot going on, but things progress in a slow deliberate pace. Going to update the tags as the story progresses with what is important so keep an eye out for that I guess if you want.

To Steve there were few things that were as nice as waking up early in the morning while everything was still dark outside.  It meant he could take a quick shower, start his coffee, get dressed and then go right downstairs to get started baking.  The peaceful twilight made work easy and for an early riser like him it was a great time to get things started.

With flour, eggs, milk, and all the ingredients he’d need for his morning batches set out, Steve went right to work mixing up batter after batter and placing muffins in the oven.  Each day was a challenge to try to guess what would sell well and what might not, but after so long of running the place he had a pretty good idea on how much to make of what.  Fruit muffins were always a big seller, strawberry and blueberry were the best sellers with apple and banana nut right behind them so he always made a lot of those.  Beyond that though it was really just guess work trying not to make too much that he’d have to get rid of after a day or so and yet making enough that anyone coming in to buy one could actually get one.

Once the oven was full Steve went out to the front of the store and glanced outside.  Dawn was still well over an hour away and the street front was deserted and quiet.  The beach that was within view was dark and the light of the moon reflected on the waves of the ocean offered the only available light.  It was peaceful and it made Steve feel like he was the only person around for miles just looking out at everything.

Soon though, the sun would start to rise and people would wake up and join the world again.  They’d wake up hungry for breakfast and many of them would get something that passed as food like those sugary cereals or toaster pastries, but not all of them.  No, several people on this street would come into his store looking for muffins, doughnuts, and some admittedly fairly generic coffee.

With those happy thoughts in mind, Steve got back to work and let himself be lost to the sounds around him.  Mixers going, vents whirring, and the slight whoosh that meant the oven had started to heat itself up again were all small bits of noise that he managed to block out as he rolled out some dough for doughnuts. 

Before too long he was taking trays of muffins out of the oven and setting them out to cool.  From there he put them out on display trays out in the store and looked at one of the several clocks he had around the place.  Being a baker he had to constantly check the time and make sure things didn’t get left alone for too long or let things bake for longer than they needed.  So long as he knew the time he knew what needed to be done and it kept things from being too stressful.

“5:30, right on time,” Steve said to himself and looked out the front door to see the first hint of dawn starting to show.

The weather called for a sunny day with some clouds and soft winds.  It would be a wonderful day to be outside and maybe he’d be able to get out for a bit and enjoy some of it, but for now he had doughnuts to get ready.

As he was kneading out some dough the sudden chiming of the bell over his front door rang out across the quiet of the store.  Steve looked up at the clock and saw that it was just a little after 6 now, but was wondering how someone had opened up the door that he knew was locked.

“Hey, Cap!  You back there?”

And in just five words Steve had the answer to the question he didn’t get to ask.

“Yeah, Tony, I’m just kneading out some dough for the doughnuts.  Come on back.”  Steve didn’t even stop in his kneading as his friend and general ‘go-to’ guy for all his mechanical needs walked into the kitchen and sauntered right over to him.

“Oooh!  Fresh doughnuts huh?  Lucky me.  Can I get a dozen to go?”  Tony smirked and Steve just flicked some of the flour on his table into his goatee making the already peppered dark hairs even whiter.

“Only if you help knead some of this dough.  I need to get at least a hundred cut out before 9 and this will still take a half hour to raise before I can cut them and then another 30 minutes n the proofer to rise before I can fry them.”

“Fine, fine, slave driver,” Tony rolled his eyes but went to wash his hands before he came back and helped knead the dough that Steve set in front of him into loaves.

“So what brings you by so early?”  Steve asked glancing at his friend while he grabbed a second bit of dough to knead out, “Normally it takes 8 cups of espresso and the sounds of guitars going through a wood chipper to wake you up.”

“Ignoring that as I have excellent taste in music regardless of what you think, I was up working on this car someone brought in last night.  Things are quiet lately so thought I’d work on it and get it done fast for the guy.  Plus Pepper isn’t sleeping so well lately so not having to worry about sharing the covers with someone else should be good for her.”  Tony went quiet and suddenly got a mischievous glint in his eye, “Speaking of Pepper though…  Can I get a few things to take back to her and place an order for something going on in a few months?”

“Hmm?”  Steve stopped what he was doing and looked at Tony for a moment wondering about why he was bothering to ask a question he knew he wouldn’t say no to, “Of course, Tony. You don’t have to ask.  Just tell me what you need and when and I’ll be sure to write it down, and you can get first pick of anything from the store too.  If you want anything specific that I don’t regularly make though just ask and I’ll get to it quick before you have to get back to your shop.”

“Well I was thinking of getting her something with anchovies and dill pickles.  Got anything like that?”

“An-what?”  Steve looked at him confused and he shook his head a bit thinking he misheard something.

“Or maybe I’ll just take some of these doughnuts and get some mustard.”

“Tony… what?”

“Ya know what?”  Tony grinned and pointed right at him with a flour covered finger, “Anything salty and vinegar-y would be great.  Think you could make a pickle flavored ice cream?”

The very idea, while disgusting, did quickly go through Steve’s head.  Thoughts of how he would make something like that came and went before anything solid came from it.  He wasn’t sure how such a thing would taste and while he had no actual intentions to make such a disaster he thought researching it would be interesting to see if it was even actually possible.

“And as for the order… I’m thinking about another 18 weeks to be safe, and maybe just some buns.”

“Buns?”  Steve stared feeling like he was being played.

“Yeah.  Maybe a light blue or pink color?”  Tony pursed his lips and then tilted his head like he was thinking about something, “Though I guess yellow and green would be safe enough colors if we can’t tell yet.  Not to mention I have no idea about cooking or baking or whatever so I’m not sure how those buns will bake in the oven.”

Steve stared at Tony.  Tony stared back with a grin on his face that he got when he was being witty or thought he was being funny.  If this was some kind of joke though Steve had no idea what it could have been and he just continued to stare feeling like he was missing something.

“Seriously?”  After another minute of Steve not saying anything, Tony just huffed and poked him in the head, “Pickles, Rogers… Buns… In the oven!”

“I don’t… Wha?”  Steve tilted his head.

“Pepper’s pregnant, Jarhead.”

That finally jolted Steve out of his stupor and he glared at the other man, “Jarhead is the term for the Marines, Tony, I served in the army.”

“Oh like there’s that big a difference either way,” Tony rolled his eyes, “And did what I just say even make it into that empty container you call a head?”

It was at that moment that the first part of what Tony had said finally hit Steve like a punch to the face.  He blinked quickly and slowly let a smile cross his face until it bloomed into a full out grin.

“She is?!  Oh, God, Tony!  That’s great!  When’s she due?  When’d you find out?  Do you guys need any help setting up a nursery or whatever for them?”

“Calm down, Cap,” Tony laughed and held up his hands like he could keep the excitement the other man was showing from infecting him, “And she just found out yesterday.  She’d been feeling a bit sick lately so she went to the doctor and when she came home she said the doctor told her she was pregnant.  We haven’t set up any appointments yet but I figure maybe around April is when she’ll be due.  As for the rest…? We’ll let you know.”

“That’s still great, Tony, I’m really happy for the both of you,” Steve grinned and went back to his dough, “Are you hoping for a boy or a girl?”

When he didn’t get an immediate answer Steve looked up and saw that his friend was now looking pensive and rubbing at his chest.

“I dunno, is alcoholism more likely to be passed onto girls than boys or anything?”

“Tony…”

“Don’t ‘Tony’ me, Cap, we both know I’m a recovering alcoholic and don’t even try to mince words with it!”  Tony huffed and turned away to look at one of the ovens that he had fixed before in the past.

“Tony, it’s been over three years since that accident and you’ve been sober for nearly two years now.”  He reached out to put a hand on his friend’s shoulder.

“Doesn’t change the fact that thanks to me being a drunk idiot I now have shrapnel in my chest.” Tony grunted out annoyed and rubbing at his chest more. 

Steve still remembered the night Tony had been in that accident.  There had been a party somewhere and Tony had gotten a few to many drinks before he got in his car to drive home.  On the way home he had crashed into the median and his car had gone flipping several dozen yards before it crashed into a tree on the side of the road. 

The end result was Tony in the hospital for two weeks, pieces of metal embedded into his chest that they couldn’t safely remove, a hefty fine, a suspension of his driver’s license, and community service for a year.  It could have been so much worse but it still served as a wakeup call to him.  He’d gotten clean and sober and regularly attended AA meetings and everything was going better for him, and that was why it hurt so much to see him get down on himself to Steve.

“Tony, you made a mistake but you’ve learned from it and you’re fighting hard every day to stay sober.  You have to take that as a win.”  He squeezed the man’s shoulder and felt as the tension slowly eased.

“I suppose you’re right,” Tony took a deep breath and let it out slowly, “Guess I’m just nervous about screwing up is all.”

“You’ll do fine, Tony… stop being so negative.  It’s going to be a bright and wonderful day so stop being so down and gloomy when you don’t have a reason to be.  The baby is months away from being born and knowing you you’re going to spend as much time as you can get learning everything there is to know about parenting and childcare.”

“I will forever deny that I do any of that regardless of if you’re right or not,” the man huffed and tossed down the loaf he had been kneading, “And I don’t know what weather you’re looking at but it’s going to pour today.  I’d wager at least an inch and that’s at the very least.”

“What?  Tony, c’mon the weather called for mostly clear skies all day.  They aren’t even calling for rain.”

“Be that as it may, my dear Cap, this crap in my chest is aching in a bad way that tells me that we’re going to be in for some heavy rains today.  I’d put money on it.”

“Fine then, a free tire rotation and oil change says you’re wrong.”

“Feh!  You want to play that game?  Fine then; when it rains buckets today you can bet that you’ll owe me three dozen treats that I will collect at my leisure.”  Tony stuck out his tongue in a juvenile display but Steve just fondly rolled his eyes and held out his hand to shake on their bet.

“It’s a bet,” They shook hands and then he shoved the other man, “Now hurry up and finish kneading that dough into loaves.  I’ve still got a few things left to make and I open the shop at 7.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Go ahead and guess who's going to win this bet.

**Author's Note:**

> Short I know but it's a start. I'm hoping that by posting this I'll be more pumped to write more so comment, critiques, and anything is appreciated.


End file.
